


No (Place Like) Home For Wicked Witches

by changedfaethebetter



Category: Wicked - All Media Types, Wicked - Schwartz/Holzman
Genre: Alternate Universe - Post-Canon, Angst, F/F, F/M, Fluff and Angst, Post-Canon, Reunions
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-07-31
Updated: 2020-08-20
Packaged: 2021-03-06 03:40:25
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 7
Words: 15,604
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25636693
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/changedfaethebetter/pseuds/changedfaethebetter
Summary: So, she had a spell, but no idea where it would take her. The description said home, but that didn’t mean much to her anymore. Elphaba hadn’t had a place to call home in a very long time. Still, she was injured, and utterly, hopelessly, alone. What choice did she have?---What if Elphaba had kept her temper in check long enough to escape without the Wizard calling the guards after finding Dillamond? What if Fiyero never got the chance to leave with her? What if Elphaba left Oz alone?And, what if Glinda's happy ending wasn't quite what she'd always wanted? What if two hearts aren't always enough?So, I've tagged this graphic depictions of violence, just because I don't want to trigger anyone, but it's mostly tagged that for the description of injuries in the first few chapters rather than actual fighting/violence. I might change the rating later, if I feel it needs it. I'm also planning on posting any smut as separate fics if/when it comes up so this can keep a teen rating.
Relationships: Elphaba Thropp/Fiyero Tigelaar, Elphaba Thropp/Fiyero Tigelaar/Galinda Upland, Elphaba Thropp/Galinda Upland, Fiyero Tigelaar/Galinda Upland, Glinda the Good/Wicked Witch of the West
Comments: 18
Kudos: 58





	1. This Hollow Kind of Helplessness

**Author's Note:**

> Okay, so, a little housekeeping just to set up this AU: It’s going to be predominantly musicalverse, though I will be using some bookverse elements to flesh out the world a little. For the most part, assume that the events of the musical ran as in canon up until ‘Wonderful’, since in this version Elphaba escaped before the Wizard had a chance to call the guards, and so Fiyero never had a chance to leave with her. Because of this, there was no reason for Glinda and her to fight in the cornfield scene, and Glinda was able to warn Elphaba the guards were on their way, allowing her to escape. Dillamond was killed as she fled, and that along with finding out that Nessa was killed just to bait her was enough to push her into her post No Good Deed state, and events progressed mostly as standard after that. Glinda went to her, For Good happened, and Elphaba ‘melted’, only in this timeline Fiyero never became the scarecrow, and she left Oz alone.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It’s been five years since Elphaba ‘melted’. Glinda and Fiyero are as happily married as they can be, given what’s missing, and Elphaba is somewhere over the deadly desert, all alone, and in a desperate state.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What is this hollow kind of helplessness I'm feeling?  
> This type of terror is new.  
> And, the fact that I can hardly breathe is now revealing,  
> How much I've changed cause of you.  
> You light the world for me,  
> You live life fearlessly,  
> Braver than the bravest of us do.

Fiyero had never once seen himself living a quiet life. He’d always been a troublemaker, right from childhood, and living in a quant cottage on the outskirts of the emerald city? Well, it would have sounded dreadfully boring to him. Still, he supposed life wasn’t so quiet- just as quiet as it could be, what with being married to the acting queen of Oz, and all. They’d had lavish quarters in the emerald city palace, and still maintained them, for times where his wife’s presence in the city was vital, but they’d both grown sick of city life far quicker than they thought possible. It all felt a little too shallow now.  
  
“Fiyero?” Glinda’s voice rang through from their bedroom clear as a bell, baring a shrill note of false cheeriness which put his teeth on edge. He knew she had her role to play, but still, it was hard sometimes to hear her so easily slip into a lie. “‘Yero dearest, do you mind buttoning me up?”  
  
Glinda looked a vision, as always, striding into the room without a curl out of place. Still, it wasn’t as though her being beautiful was anything new. The hollow look behind her smile wasn’t new either, though it’d become rarer as the years had passed. The dress, however, was new, and it was what had caught Fiyero off guard. 

Now, Glinda was a woman with more dresses than any he’d met, enough that he’d long since given up on working out where she stored them all- though he had a feeling it had something to do with that infernal book of hers. This one wasn’t her usual style at all; in fact, though he’d never say it, it reminded him more of someone else. It was perfectly tailored to her, and still regal, but simpler, lacking the many layers of underskirts and frills he was used to from her when she had to make a public address. It had long sleeves to offer some protection against the encroaching winter, and it was practical in a way which didn’t feel particularly like his wife, but in all honesty there was very little about Emerald City fashion which surprised Fiyero any more. It was the colour which had thrown him for a loop. It was studded with thousands of crystals, moving from a forest green so dark it almost looked black at the hem, to a paler, and painfully familiar shade at the neckline. There was a small pink rose pinned at her throat, which looked out of place, but then what he ever known of fashion?

“Glin you’re wearing-“ he started, taking a few uncertain steps towards her. It’d been years since he’d seen his wife wear green. 

Glinda cut him off, a sharp impatient note in her voice despite the forced cheer. “It’s _pretty_ , isn’t it? I had it commissioned specifically for today- now be a dear and help me with it, won’t you?” 

Her pale fingers were holding the front of the dress up, and he moved behind her to begin work on the row of silk buttons, nimble fingers just barely brushing across her skin as he did so. It shouldn’t have taken more then a minute, but he dragged the moment out a little longer than necessary, and once he’d finished he took the opportunity to wrap his arms around her waist, careful not to mess up her hair. 

“You don’t have to pretend with me. It’s okay that you’re not okay.” He murmured, keeping his voice soft.

Glinda’s walls began to crack. She so _rarely_ got to just be anything but _good_ these days, and today? Well, part of her wasn’t sure that she could handle standing there and giving her speech and smiling like her heart didn’t hurt. How had Elphaba handled being the strong one all those years? She didn’t know.

“I guess I just can’t believe that it’s been five years.” She admitted, the false happiness gone from her tone now. She shifted, tipping her head back against his chest slightly, and dislodging the tiara perched in her hair in the process. It was her favourite- gold with sapphires and emeralds given to her by an Antelope jeweller as thanks for restoring his business. She always wore it on the anniversary. It made her think that maybe, just maybe, Elphaba might be proud of what she’d achieved. 

* * *

All that Elphaba could see was scarlet. Her fingers were so slick with blood that their emerald colouring had almost been lost, and her mind was swimming. She didn’t have long. 

There was still a crossbow bolt sticking out of her shoulder, but she didn’t dare pull that one out after discovering the one in her side had been barbed. If she started losing blood any quicker she wouldn’t have a hope in hell of fixing it. 

She could hear fists pounding on the rotting wooden walls of old shack she’d been squatting in, and knew her magical barricade wouldn’t hold up for very long- not with so many of them. She was getting weaker by the minute and the defences would weaken with her. She had a notebook open in front of her, flicking desperately through the pages. It was thick, obnoxiously pink, and the large, looping handwriting on the front cover betrayed that she’d liberated it from her roommate’s possession what felt like a million years ago, but right now it was her lifeline. She didn’t have any other books, just this, with the important spells she’d copied from the Grimmerie and a handful of her own invention, and this was her best chance to get out of this situation. If she believed in the unnamed god, she might have prayed.

The voices outside were getting louder, and Elphaba could practically see the crowd around her shack swelling, the flickering of torches visible through cracks in the rotten walls.

“It’s a monster!”

“Did you get a good look at it?”

“Smoke it out, Jim! Smoke it out or let it _burn_ in there.”

That last sentiment had Elphaba worried. It had been a harsh winter, but it’d been a week since they’d seen rain, and she doubted the dry cold would do much to protect the wooden shack from flame. She didn’t have time to pack up, not that she had much to pack in the first place. Her food supplies were entirely depleted, what little clothing she had would be lost, but she’d find a way to deal with that later. Her most important possessions were held in the satchel, aside from the book in front of her, and the broom laying abandoned at her side.

In desperation, she settled on a spell- though, she had no idea where it would take her. The description said home, but that didn’t mean much to her any more. Elphaba hadn’t had one of those in a very long time. Perhaps it would take her back to the cave a kindly Bear had allowed her to sleep in before she’d discovered this place, or the makeshift river camp she’d set up. Maybe it would even take her back to Kiamo Ko- But, no. Elphaba wouldn’t even let herself hope for that. It’d been- well, she’d lost track of how long, but it had to have been years. There was no way her presence in Oz would cause anything but panic and death.

As the crackle of flames beginning to lap at the walls of her cabin overtook her, and black spots began to dance in her vision, Elphaba managed to choke out the incantation. Anywhere was better than where she was now.

* * *

“Fellow Ozians, let us never forget the braverism of little Dorothy, in,” _~~murdering~~_ , “vanquishing,” _~~my best friend~~_ , “that wicked witch!” That earned a cheer so loud it made Glinda feel faintly sick. “And on this day, so steeped in history, when we buried…” Glinda faltered for a moment. The crowd were all looking at her, and she swallowed, glancing briefly to Fiyero, who was waiting just off stage to her. He stuck out a mile, all encouraging smiles and blue diamonds in a sea of green clad sycophants, and she knew that if she just got through her speech, they could go home, and grieve in their own way. Still, it was so hard to refer to Elphie- _her_ Elphie- like they all wanted her to. “buried all those horriendable events, we must look towards the future!”

The rest of the ceremony passed in a blur. Her speech earned her a raucous round of applause, and it took her longer than she would have liked to just get back to Fiyero, shaking hands and smiling with important dignitaries and- well, she didn’t even know who else. She was still pretending to care about her conversation with some dreadfully boring noble, when her dear husband swooped in to save her.

“Glinda dear, can I pull you away for a moment? I’m afraid I’m not feeling too well, but of course, I don’t want to ruin your party…” He was smiling at her apologetically, but she could see mischief sparking in his eyes. She could see the noble bristling, because despite years of her trying, her husband had never been fully accepted in the snobbier courtly circles. Many still considered him too wild, not that she cared a jot about what they thought. Their prejudice had already taken one of the most important people in her life, she wouldn’t let it take another.“Oh, well that won’t do.” She offered the man she’d been speaking to an exaggerated smile, trying to hide her own exhaustion with this farce.

“I’m so awfully sorry, but I can’t leave my poor husband to walk home alone if he’s sick- what if he got hurt on his way?” Her smile didn’t reach her eyes, but that didn’t matter. The saccharin sweetness in her voice was enough to shoo the man off. She turned to Fiyero, and managed a slightly more genuine smile, offering him a hand, and pulling him quickly through the crowd, only occasionally pausing to give excuses when they were asked for them. The evening was cold, but Glinda didn’t call for a carriage, it wasn’t a long walk anyway, and they were scarcely five minutes into it when Fiyero was wrapping his jacket around her shoulders. He was just thoughtful like that.

“I hate having to talk about her like that.” Glinda eventually murmured, breaking the comfortable silence once they were far enough away from the crowds that they wouldn’t be overheard. “I wish they’d just let her _rest_. Do they really need to have some big party every year?”

His arm curled around her waist, pulling her close to his side, and giving her something solid to focus on rather than the turmoil inside of her own mind. “She wouldn’t hold it against you.” He promised, though it did little to settle the blonde’s nausea. “You know she wouldn’t.”

Their cottage was coming into view now, and Glinda could hardly wait to just get to bed, and get this awful day over with. She brought a hand up- performing a simple little spell which left flickering light dancing behind the windows. A fire burning in the hearth to warm the place before they arrived. “I hope you’re right, ‘Yero. I really do.” She eventually hummed, after a long pause, because she wasn’t so sure.

Once they reached the edge of their garden, Glinda paused, before deviating from the path to their front door, pulling the rose from her dress, and bending down among the near-emot flower beds, to a small, weathered stone slab, half the size of a pillow, with a green glass bottle standing on top. She was getting mud on her dress, but she didn’t really care. She’d never suited green anyway.

“Oh, _Elphie_...” She whispered, and while the sting of tears pricked her eyes, they didn’t spill over. Her fingers splayed briefly on the cold stone, before she shifted, placing the pink rose into the bottle, kissing two fingers, and pressing them back to the stone. She was vaguely aware of Fiyero standing behind her, but she didn’t look up. She wanted to speak, to say something poignant, but, she was so burnt out with fake speeches and pretty words, and so she just knelt there, as the snow began to fall, huddled in Fiyero’s jacket over an empty grave, wishing on every star in Oz for just one more day.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And, yes I stole the chapter title from Frozen. It seemed to fit. Maybe I'll change it later but it's late here and screw it.


	2. In the Winter From the Water Through the Wind

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Elphaba is fading fast, and running out of options. Can she rely on the support of some very old friends on a winter’s night?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In the winter  
> From the water  
> Through the wind  
> If a stranger ends up sent by fate  
> Are we gonna be ready?  
> Well. We have to be, don't we?

For a single, long moment, Elphaba waited, heart racing, for something to happen. Of course, several things did happen, but unfortunately for her, not one of them was magical. The screaming outside intensified when they heard her chanting, the glow of flame began to fill the shack, and the dry winter cold began to turn to unbearable heat as choking smoke took hold.

Opening her mouth to begin the spell again, Elphaba was overtaken by a fit of hacking coughs, smoke filling her lungs and leaving her unable to even speak. Her fingers clutched at the wound in her side, desperately trying to stem the bleeding. The rushed spell she'd cast had barely managed to stem it. If she had time, she could have probably managed better, but time was one thing she certainly _didn't_ have. She had to go, and she had to go _now_ , or she was done for. Turning back to the page of hastily scrawled notes, Elphaba took a breath ready to start again, and then, all at once, the book in front of her sank through the rotten floor boards as though they’d turned to water. She saw them ripple slightly as they closed back around where her book- her last, great lifeline- had been sitting only seconds before, but when she touched the spot where it’d been the boards were hard and unyielding as ever.

She'd already done everything she could do to stem the bleeding without access to a proper spellbook or supplies. Up until now she'd always managed to keep things to hand to keep herself alive, but between the heavy snow, and the fact that her mere existence seemed to be enough to attract the wrath of locals, she'd not been able to. Even if she had a way of getting out of this shack with it burning and surrounded, and with all the knowledge she'd gathered over these five long years gone, she had no way to deal with this degree of bleeding. She was done for. 

“No.” Her breath was short now, green fingers grasping desperately at something which was no longer there, her nails scraping along the mouldy floorboards. “No. No no no…” Her eyes shut tight as she tried to ground herself against the pain- trying to think of _any_ plan, but her vision was already starting to fail. She could see spots dancing in front of her, and caught a last blurry look at flames beginning to lap at the walls before even that became hard to make out. Her head was spinning, and she felt ready to vomit, but all she could see was light and dark, and even that was fading fast. _Elphaba_ was fading fast.

A sick feeling, which was somehow different to the nausea already churning inside of her, settled in the pit of her stomach, before a sensation like falling hit her. For a brief moment it was as though the room had no floor, and she was in freefall, her vision blurred, her lungs choked with the smoke quickly filling the room, her emerald skin left pale from losing so much blood. Elphaba couldn’t see, couldn’t breathe, couldn’t think. 

Blackness overwhelmed her in an instant, and this time there were no smoke and mirrors, only blood, and fire.

* * *

It’d taken a few minutes to rouse his wife from her vigil, but Fiyero didn’t mind. They both missed Elphaba, and he knew how difficult these parties had always been on her. Having to smile and pretend everything was _wonderful_ while she tried to bite back grief which threatened to swallow her. He knew that she would have stepped back from public life years ago, if it wasn’t for the promise she’d made. A part of him still hoped that she would- he hated seeing the toll that being _Glinda the Good_ had taken on her over the years. Still, the blizzard outside was intensifying, and he'd had to get her into the blissfully warm house before the pair of them both froze. 

Moving in through their door, Glinda settled herself on their couch, his jacket still wrapped around her shoulder’s depite the roaring fire in the grate. It'd be a comfort for her until the snow which had settled in her hair had melted. Fiyero however, didn't sit right away, being immediately and inexplicably drawn to the faded pink book laying on their coffee table, since he as almost certain it hadn’t been there when they’d left. He noted the Shiz badge on the front, with ‘Property of Galinda Upland’ written in his wife’s looping handwriting underneath it, but he couldn’t think why it would be out. Nostalgia, perhaps, for a time when things had been simpler? It was probably just Glinda wanting to think back over their school days. Honestly, he couldn't blame her on this of all days.

“Glin, honey? Where does this go? Want me to put it away?” He asked, holding the book up for her to see, though the way her brow creased when she saw it only gave him more questions.

“Where did you-“ She began, though she was quickly distracted from the book when a loud clattering of china hitting stone rang out from their kitchen. Her eyes widened slightly, and she moved to get up, but Fiyero shook his head, gesturing for her to stay seated, and handing her the book.

“It’s- It’s probably just Malky destroying things again.” He reasoned, glancing around for the little terror. Neither of them were animal people, strictly speaking, and he knew Glinda probably wouldn’t have wanted a cat at all, if it were any other cat, but they’d found the little white stray wondering around after Elphaba- Well. They couldn’t leave it there. In all honesty, by this point Fiyero was actually rather fond of it. He pressed the book into her hands, giving what he hoped was a reassuring smile. “I’ll go clean up whatever she broke, you just try and work out where to put that.”

Despite his assurances, Fiyero kept his hand on the hilt of the- mostly ceremonial- sword at his belt, glad that this had at least happened when he was still wearing his guard uniform. He stepped through into the kitchen, relaxing slightly when he saw the cat blinking up at him from the counter top with it's lamp-like eyes, offering him a meow as though to acknowledge his response to her summons. His grip on the sword relaxed, and he picked his way through the mess of broken china to scratch the animal behind it’s ears, smiling a little despite himself.

“Have you been breaking plates again? You know your mamma hates that…” He murmured, but the cat had other ideas, twisting to nip at his fingers before letting out a second, louder meow. It sounded almost impatient with him, and, not for the first time, Fiyero found himself marvelling at just how smart this cat seemed to be. “Are you angling for a treat?” He asked, taking two steps towards the jar of them by the kitchen door, and then freezing.

“What the…?” He murmured, stepping a little closer to the bundle of rags shoved against the door. They’d probably been black once, but they were faded to grey and so heavily patched that it was hard to tell what was original and what wasn’t, especially given the fading light in the kitchen, and the fact that they were caked in mud and soot, and something that looked sickeningly like blood. Fiyero took a step closer, before realising that there was blood smeared on the door too, and slowly seeping from the rag-covered body on the floor. He pulled her hood back slightly to see her face, but the half-light of the kitchen made it difficult to see much more than the shadow of her. “Oh sweet Oz.” He was on his knees now, reaching out to push the rags aside, and getting a feel of icy skin. He thought for a moment that it was a corpse, until he heard a faint, rattling breath escaping it, or- her? Whoever she was.

* * *

Glinda was still frowning down at the book, flicking through pages on pages of notes. It wasn’t her handwriting, it was Elphaba’s tiny scrawl, but she couldn’t think for the life of her _when_ Elphie would have written this. Though the first few pages were the history notes that her friend had offered to make for _her_ to study, they ended abruptly, to be replaced with something far stranger. This was magic like she’d never seen- similar to what she’d seen the Grimmerie, although while many of the letters were still foreign to her she could read this more plainly, without the book’s swirling script. Still, it was complex, and most of them were spells she wouldn’t dare attempt herself unless she was desperate. It was the kind of magic with a tangible cost. Had Elphaba been writing magic even before the Emerald City?

“What were you up to, Elphie…?” She murmured, fingers brushing over the ink as though she could gleam the thoughts of a long dead woman from a note she could scarcely read.

“Glin?” Fiyero called from the other room, and the panic in his voice was enough to stir her from the pages. She was barely up on her feet when he came through, with something- no, someone- held in his arms. His uniform's shirt was already soaked in blood, and the panic was evident in his features.

Glinda snapped into action immediately- it wasn’t the first time a lost traveller had turned up at their door looking for shelter in weather like this, though this was first time one had been bleeding so heavily. “Oh my god, are they…?” She began, but she didn’t even have to finish her sentence before Fiyero filled in the blanks for her.

“Breathing? Yeah. Didn’t get a good look at her in the dark, but there’s something in her back. Can you-” He settled the stranger on their sofa, laying her on her front, and Glinda moved over quickly, nodding an affirmation.

“I think so.” She nodded, glancing up at her husband quickly. “Can you grab me the red bottle from the medicine cabinet? And bandages, and…” Seeing the amount of blood, “And some of that healing balm… And we might need some pinlobble for the pain, if we have any.” Having a plan was slightly calming, but, she was hardly dressed to play nurse.

As Fiyero left to grab supplies, she began untying the stranger’s cloak so she could get a good look at her injuries, exposing her face to the firelight for the first time.  
“Oh my… Oz…” Glinda suddenly felt nauseous, dropping down onto her knees beside the sofa, her fingers brushing gently over the woman’s cheek as though she couldn’t believe what she was seeing. The features were familiar, if a little more weathered than they had been the last time Glinda had seen her, and as much as she was pale from blood loss, the green hue of her skin was plain as the fire light danced across it. “Elphie…” Her hands were shaking, and for the briefest moment she couldn’t think what to do, her hands stilled, looking pale against the green, but- “Okay. Okay. I’ve got this.” Glinda swallowed, and then set to work trying to patch up her Elphaba’s wounds. There’d be no time to ask questions if she let her bleed out here and now.

The dress was a ruin, and the blonde made short work of tearing the existing holes open wider so she could work, exposing torn flesh littered with scars she didn’t have time to think about right now. The wound in her side was top priority, it was where she was losing the most blood. There was definitely less flowing from it than should be, and Glinda suspected some spell to slow the damage. It was probably what had saved Elphaba’s life up to this point. Her wand was leaning against the wall by the door from where she’d dumped it after getting in, and it allowed her to do some simple tricks to clean the wound and start it closing just enough to stem the bleeding. She’d normally have done more, but… Well, this was Elphaba. Glinda refused to take any risks with her when she was already in such a weakened state. One more quick charm to try and help her replenish any blood she’d lost a little quicker, and she was happy enough that that wound, while it would need time, and treatment to heal, wasn’t life threatening.

She could hear Fiyero banging around in their bathroom looking for supplies, but Glinda didn’t want to risk waiting, especially not since the wound around the bolt looked much smaller than the one in her side had. Pulling Elphaba so that she was laid across her lap, giving her better access. She curled an hand around the bolt, and pulled it gently, though it didn’t budge. She swallowed, glancing at Elphaba, glad she was unconscious. “Sorry, Elphie…” She murmured before yanking, hard on the bolt, dragging it out of her skin in as quick a moment as she could.

It only took a second or so for it to be torn free of her shoulder, but in the moment following Glinda became aware of two horrendous things at once. One was the wicked barbs covering the projectile, which had torn the wound open wider, and kept flesh clinging to them even as blood gushed into the lap of her ballgown. The second was that, judging by the wounded, animal scream that filled the room, Elphaba had was awake.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Turns out the stealing chapter titles from other shows is a thing I'm doing now.


	3. When the Moment Explodes.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Elphaba wakes up and doesn't know where she is. She's scared, in pain and overwhelmed, and loses control in a way she hasn't in years. It brings back old memories, good and bad for both her, and Fiyero.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Into thoughts of all the things I've left undone,  
> And flashes from a life I've just begun.  
> Every friend I ever knew or thought I did,  
> The love that I could give, the love I hid.  
> Every stupid life before your eyes cliche,  
> Can I please go out some less expected way?  
> But none alive or dying crack those codes  
> When the moment explodes.

“Red bottle, red bottle…” Fiyero was muttering to himself, turning their medicine cabinet upside down to try and find what he’d been sent for. He’d found the bandages, and the healing balm, and while they had almost no pinlobble- neither of them partook, and they had little need for it as a painkiller- what they did have was in a small wooden box set with the rest of the supplies. It would hopefully be enough to help the stranger, at least for now. He eventually managed to extricate the warped red glass from the back of the cabinet, when a howl of pain from the next room startled him so much that he almost dropped it.

Heart racing, he didn’t bother trying to put away the mess of medicines and hair products and Oz knows what else, gathering the supplies under one arm and running back into the room, his fingers curled around the handle of the blade at his hip, just in case. He didn’t like the thought of Glinda being alone with a stranger, just in case it was some kind of trick.

His heart sank once he saw them- His wife looked frantic, the stranger was writhing in pain, and seemed to be trying to get away from her. There was blood _everywhere_ \- it certainly wasn't a pretty sight.

“’Yero! Help. Just- Hold her, I need…” Glinda was clearly struggling, but her shouting was enough to snap him into action. “I didn’t mean to- But, I have to stop the bleeding.”

He moved over, one hand settling in the small of her back, and the other firmly planted on tight to the woman’s blood-slick shoulder, opposite where Glinda was working. He was gentle, but firm, keeping her still as best he could while Glinda tried her best to stop the wounds magically. Fiyero gritted his teeth, trying to ignore the stranger's agonised noises. He could hear her sobbing, feel her shoulder’s heaving with the struggle to breathe, and it sent a pang of guilt through him, but he didn’t move. He didn’t want to hurt her, but they couldn’t do much to help her when she was panicking and thrashing around like that. He could apologise later- but, not if she didn't make it through this.

“Please…” The woman’s voice was shaking and desperate, but it had a familiar quality to it that struck Fiyero hard. It was impossible, but, Oz, it caught him off guard how much she sounded like _her_. “Please, I didn’t do anything… I-I don't want to hurt anyone. I don't want to hurt y-” Her words were muffled beyond comprehension as Glinda shifted her position and her face was pushed into the pillows of the couch. Fiyero felt even worse, but he could hear Glinda trying her best with spells he couldn’t fathom, and it was all he could do to hold her down. Skinny as she seemed, this woman was deceptively strong. A farmer, maybe? She had the slight build of a muchkinlander, albeit a tall one, but that was a hell of a walk from here, especially with the blizzard. 

Fiyero bent closer, his hands remaining firm on her back, but his voice as gentle as he could manage. “Hey. Hey, don’t worry. I’m sorry, we’re not trying to hurt you, I promise.” He wasn’t sure if she was in any state to understand him, but he hoped that at least the sentiment behind his words would help. The wound in her shoulder was beginning to close now, albeit in a fragile state. Still, at least with the wound shut she wouldn’t be losing more blood. “Gli- My wife. She knows some healing magic, she’s trying to help with your-“

Fiyero didn’t get the chance to finish his sentence, before he was being forced back away from her, some invisible force knocking him back off his feet and into the coffee table. Trying to catch his breath, he looked around and saw Glinda had landed a few feet away on the rug. Fiyero knew that he should check on her, but he could see the girl’s face for the first time now, and her eyes were so strikingly familiar he couldn’t tear his away.

* * *

“What are we going to do?” Fiyero could feel Elphaba’s dark eyes on him, burning with an intensity that made him more than nervous. She looked angry, but thankfully _not_ at him. He didn’t want to upset her more but- what had he done to make her think that he was part of her crusade? The lion cub on the desk was whimpering, and the man- who he sincerely hoped wasn’t supposed to be their new teacher- looked ready to sedate it. Why did it even have to be here? Surely there had to be a better way to teach this lesson without tormenting the poor thing.

“We?” He replied, trying to sound cocky as ever, though- there was something inherently disarming in those eyes of hers. Still, Fiyero didn’t want to get caught up in this… Did he? Of course, he didn’t much like the thought of that poor cub being caged, and it’s whimpering was disconcerting but-

“Well _somebody_ has to do _something_!” Elphaba ran up to the desk, and for a brief moment, it was as though something had exploded. Fiyero felt a wave of air wash over him, forceful, but not enough to knock him over. It took him a moment to realise that it seemed to have hit the rest of the class… differently. Somehow. They’d been knocked back- some were on the ground, some were frozen in place; Most of them were twitching as though they were fighting being pinned back by something he couldn’t see. Fiyero looked around and saw Elphaba standing at the centre of it all, looking panicked.

“What’s happening?” He stopped briefly to glance at a Gillikinese boy pinned against the desk beside him, before rushing to Elphaba. She had to have something to do with this. Galinda had mentioned that she was studying sorcery but- this? This was unreal.

“I-“ Elphaba looked panicked, and a little guilty, though notably that guilt seemed to fade somewhat once she looked from Fiyero, to the terrified cub, and back. “I don’t know, I just got mad and-“ She made a wild gesture, and it wasn’t hard to figure out that she was just as lost as he was on the mechanics of all this. He made a mental note never to anger Elphaba Thropp.

Taking a breath, Fiyero tried to think what to say, nodding nervously. The man behind the desk seemed to twitch more violently when Elphaba took a step forwards, so he held out a hand to stop her. “Alright! Just- don’t move.” He instructed, trying to keep his voice as calming as he could, adding, mostly to try and break the building tension, “And, don’t get mad at me.”

He bolted forwards, recovering the poor, terrified creature to protect it from the cold, and taking hold of the cage's handle before moving back past this strange, green woman towards the door. He paused when he realised she wasn’t following him. He got the feeling Elphaba shouldn’t be here when they snapped out of _whatever this was_. “Are you coming?” He asked, stopping Fiyero way to the door. He met her eyes again, and while there was still fire in them, this time they felt warm, more inviting, and less likely to burn him. He opened his mouth to speak, but- they didn’t have the time, and with that, he took off out of the room with her trailing just behind.

* * *

Elphaba looked the man opposite her in the eyes, and felt sick to her stomach.

The pain was beginning to dull now- or, maybe she was just acclimating to it? She couldn’t say, but, the foreign hands no longer pinning her down and prodding at her wounds definitely helped ease her panic. There was fire still burning, just like there had been when she’d closed her eyes, but it wasn’t a threat to her any more. This _definitely_ wasn’t her shack. She was propped up on plush cushions rather than a damp straw mattress, and the heat actually felt inviting, though she suspected that was mostly due to how cold she felt. Despite the seeming comfort of her position she couldn’t bring herself to feel reassured. Why would they be patching her up? The people in the village had been out for her blood, they wouldn’t do this.

Elphaba hadn’t lost control like that in a long time, and she couldn’t help but feel a little guilty, but between being held down, and the pain, and the sheer terror of being so helpless and not even being able to see where she was she couldn’t keep it in any longer. Still, the man’s eyes didn’t betray the fear which she’d expected.

As her mind began to clear- faster than it should have been able to by natural means- Elphaba realised that she’d seen those eyes before. They were dark, even darker than her own, with a ring of a softer brown around the edge, and a handful of hazel flecks dotted like stars in their centre. The tiny blue diamonds framing them were enough to tip her off that she was right- and Oz did she wish that she wasn’t.

* * *

“You think I’m really stupid, don’t you?” Elphaba was still panicking slightly about the mess she’d left back in class. What if she couldn’t fix it? What if they’d all still seen them run despite what was going on? She really hadn’t meant to hurt anybody, she just- got angry. Lost control.

It was the story of her life, really.

Still, Fiyero didn’t seem scared of her. He’d come with her, despite seeing what she could do. Why? Well, she couldn’t quite say, but… she was at least glad for the company.

“No!” She answered, a little too quickly, and then, frowning slightly, because her opinion had definitely been changed by this event, but... She still didn't exactly trust him. “Not _really_ stupid.”

“Why is it every time I see you you’re causing some kind of commotion?” Fiyero asked as she followed quickly behind, and while it did sting a little, Elphaba couldn’t exactly blame him, after he'd seen what she'd done to their classmates. 

“I don’t cause commotions, I am one.” She huffed, kneeling down to check on the cub in the tiny cage. He was trembling worse than ever, and another harsh pang of guilt washed over her. She didn’t feel like an argument with Galinda’s perfect prince right now.

“Well, that’s for sure.”

Now, that comment stung, and as much as Elphaba didn’t want an argument, she couldn’t keep her temper in check and refrain from biting back. “Oh, so I should just keep my mouth shut, is that what you’re saying?”

“No, I just-“ Fiyero began, but Elphaba cut him off before he got the chance.

“Do you think I want to be this way? Do you think I want to care this much?” Guilt was pooling inside of her gut again, and she glanced briefly back towards the science building. Nobody had emerged yet. Were they still all just- pinned there? Were they in pain? No. She couldn’t think about that right now. She had to focus on the cub. She could see Fiyero opening his mouth to speak again, and she cut in before he could. “Do you think I don’t know how much easier my life would be if I didn’t-“ She began, but for once, she was the one being cut off mid-sentence.

“Do you ever let anyone else talk?” He sounded annoyed, now, and Elphaba felt her cheeks flush a darker green than usual, embarrassed at being called out. She supposed she’d gotten so used to having to fight to be heard back home she had gotten into the habit of domineering conversations.

“Sorry.” Elphaba murmured, eyes cast down towards the grass. Fiyero opened his mouth to speak, but she couldn’t help herself. “Okay, but can I just say one more thing?” She needed to know _why_ he’d come. Was it just an adventure for him? Or did he actually care? “You could have walked away back there.”

“Yeah, so?”

Elphaba knew Fiyero was trying to act aloof about it, but- there was something else behind it. There was something in the way he’d looked at her before they’d run that let her know this was the act, not what had happened in the classroom. “So, no matter how shallow and self-absorbed you pretend to be-“ She began, but once again, he cut her off.

“Excuse me? There’s no pretence here. I happen to be genuinely self-absorbed and deeply shallow.” His protest was enough to make Elphaba roll her eyes. She knew there was something genuine there, but the layers of bullshit covering it were hard work.

“No you’re not.” Was she really confident of that? No. But… Well, Elphaba could hope that it was true. She’d like to think that he’d come with her for genuine reasons- Plus there was something in his face which reminded her of the defeat in her own whenever she gave into one of her father’s demands. It was like a mask to hide his genuine feelings. “Or, you wouldn’t be so unhappy.”  
That seemed to have hit a nerve, because Fiyero looked at her for a moment before saying, “Fine, well if you don’t want my help…” and beginning to walk off.

Elphaba’s face fell, and her stubbornness wouldn’t hold up to that. “No.” She chased after him, grabbing his hand and pulling him back a few steps. “I do! I-“ She cut off quickly when he turned to face her. How had she never looked properly at those eyes up close before?

* * *

“Fiyero.” Elphaba’s breath was short, and she was still in a lot of pain, not to mention how much that little outburst had taken out of her but- Oz. How was he here? _Why_ was he here? “You- It’s really you? Isn’t it? You’re actually here, I’m not…” Hallucinating? Dreaming? It wouldn’t be the first time, but- she’d been more dehydrated than this without hallucinating. Hungrier, too. And, she’d not hit her head, so… “You shouldn’t be here! How did you get over the desert? You need to go, before they come back- You need to-“ Fiyero was smiling slightly as he cut her off, still sat on the coffee table, looking confused, and a little dazed, but, genuinely happy.

“Elphaba Thropp. Don’t you ever let anybody else talk?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, this one is pretty Elphie/Fiyero centric. That's because I got excited, and this chapter was way too long, do I decided to remove Glinda's section and move it into the next chapter to focus this part on them rather than have it be stupidly long. Sorry if you were more here for gelphie/ot3 stuff, I promise there will be more of that later on!


	4. How Did She Live? Who Took Her In?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Glinda is mad, Fiyero is trying to break the tension, and Elphaba doesn't remember the last time anybody hugged her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Is she a fake or is she real?  
> How does she look?  
> How does she feel?  
> What has she done? Where has she been?  
> How did she live? Who took her in?

“Don’t move.” Glinda quickly cut in, picking herself up off of the rug, dusting her dress off as though it wasn’t covered in blood. She’d seen Elphaba panic like that before- she’d seen it the very first day that they’d met- she should have known what would happen, but it had still come as a shock. She’d have a bruise where her shoulder had hit the edge of the coffee table, but that was the least of her concern right now. She could see Elphaba’s eyes turned on her, now, something akin to horror in them.

“Glinda? Why are you both here? You can’t be here- you should be back in OZ.” She murmured, eyes wide as she tried to sit up, despite Glinda’s warnings against it. “You need to get back to Oz, they’ll hurt you if they find you with me. They’ll-“

The blonde moved over, calmly pushing her back into a laying position, hands gentle, but firm She was laying on her side now, but it was better than her moving around. “Elphie, calm down before you hurt yourself. I did my best but-“ _But I’m not as good at magic as you are._ “I don’t want you to tear them back open while they’re so fresh. I haven’t even got them bandaged up yet- though we might be better off doing this after you’ve had a chance to get cleaned up, just in case. I don’t want to risk them getting dirty.”  
Elphaba looked up at her, looking as though she didn’t fully believe what she was seeing. “How did you find me?” She asked, though she obeyed. 

Glinda shook her head. How on earth had Elphaba gotten here if she was so out of it she didn’t remember? Had they really just gotten that lucky that it’d been their house she’d stumbled into? “Elphie? Are you… You’re just confused. You came to us, remember? This is our house, mine and Fiyero’s. You were by the kitchen door.” She leant forward to place a hand on Elphaba’s cheek, somewhat worried that the girl might have a fever or something if she’d been wondering around out in this snowstorm, but if anything her skin was still worryingly cold to the touch.

Elphaba’s face fell further, and her face turned, if possible, an even paler shade of green. “That spell. It was- Oh spirits I knew it was too vague! I’m in Oz again, aren’t I? I can’t be here…”

Glinda watched her, and her own face fell into a frown as well. She looked agitated beyond belief, and not at all happy to be home. There was a little pang of… Well, _something_ in Glinda’s chest. Annoyance, maybe? Elphaba had finally come back and she was raring to leave again the minute she could. “Yes.” She murmured, and the curtness in her tone seemed to have drawn Fiyero’s eye too. “You’re in Oz- But I don’t understand _how_ you’re here.” Her stern exterior was already showing some cracks, because she wasn’t exactly annoyed about whatever miracle this was, but- How in Oz name had Elphaba been alive all these years? And if she hadn’t even meant to arrive here, which from her reaction it seemed she hadn’t, had she been content to let them mourn her their whole lives?

* * *

“What was that?”

There was a clattering sound on the stairs which drew Elphaba’s attention from Glinda for the first time. That little farmgirl must have gotten out and- they didn’t have long. She had to get Glinda out of here before anybody knew she’d come. There were secret passages, but she didn’t know where most of them let out yet, so they weren’t an option- Glinda would just have to hide and… And watch her show. It wasn’t a nice thought, but- Maybe it was better like this.

_Sweet Oz, forgive me._

“Hurry.” Elphaba pulled back from Glinda’s arms, looking her in those piercing blue eyes a final time before quickly guiding her over to an alcove off to one side. The room was dark, and the motheaten old tapestry hanging over it would be more than enough to conceal her. “No one can know you’re here.”

“Elphie-“ Glinda was making a last attempt at protest, but she wouldn’t let her friend be found. They’d come for her next if they thought for even a moment that she’d been anything less than Elphaba’s enemy.

Elphaba’s hands were shaking as she pulled the covering over the hiding place, her fingers stopping to rest on Glinda’s arm for a brief moment. It was selfish, but she was growing very sick of selflessness, and all it was costing her. “Hide yourself.” And when Glinda tried to follow her out of the shadows, she shook her head. “Hide.”

Elphaba brought her fingers to her lips, and held them out to her briefly, before letting the tapestry fall, obscuring her view of Glinda for the final time.

* * *

Elphaba shifted uncomfortably under Glinda’s withering look. She’d never seen Glinda this angry with her, not even back before they liked one another, and the hurt in those icy blue eyes was enough to send a shiver down her spine. “There was a spell.” She tried to explain, considering making another attempt to sit up, but deciding against annoying Glinda further. “It was- You know how the Grimmerie is. I didn’t know where it would take me, but there were so many people and I was bleeding and I had to try something, so I-“

Glinda cut her off before she got a chance to speak again. “You _know_ that’s not what I meant. You _died_. I was there, I saw-”

Elphaba took a breath, steeling herself for a moment before she cut her off- she’d heard Glinda’s ranting before, and she didn’t want to give the blonde a chance to build up steam. They could be as bad as each other when it came for domineering a conversation. “What did you see, Glinda?”

* * *

Glinda watched, rooted to the spot, as Elphaba blew her a kiss from across the room. It should have felt like a hollow gesture, but- coming from Elphie? It meant a lot.

She couldn’t see a thing from behind the musty tapestry which separated them, but spotting a little chink of light breaking through a hole in the fabric she settled herself on the floor to peer through it.

Elphaba was standing in the centre of the room next to the rickety old pedestal she’d had the Grimmerie propped up on- the Grimmerie which was now tucked under her own arm. How on earth was she supposed to read that thing? _You have much too much faith in me Elphie._

She didn’t have much longer to dwell on the book, because, while she couldn’t see much from this angle, Elphaba seemed to be steeling herself for something, and sure enough, a moment later, the room was swarming. There were soldiers, and that poor lion cub all grown up, and- was that Boq? It was hard not to feel a pang of guilt for what had happened to him. If she’d never pushed him into asking Nessarose to that dance… Well. He might be happy now. He was a good man. He didn’t deserve this.

“Elphie…” her voice was swallowed by the baying soldiers and- “Oh my spirits…” Was that a fire? There was smoke swirling through the air, and a flickering light, and there was so much movement in the room she could hardly see Elphaba anymore. She was about to run out to help- promises be damned- when that poor little farm girl ran up with a bucket of something to put the fire out.

The scream that followed was gut wrenching. The flickering light was gone, and Elphaba had crumpled in on herself, wailing in apparent agony. What on earth had been in that bucket?

The little girl was clearly distraught, and Glinda felt another wave of hatred towards Morrible and the Wizard wash over her. They sent a child to do their dirty work because they were too coward to face Elphaba themselves. She ran out of the room, and the lion and Boq followed close behind. The soldiers poked at where Elphaba had been for a moment, before shrugging, and walking off, leaving the room silent.  
“Elphie?”

* * *

“I saw you- you melted, you were screaming and that poor girl was-“ Glinda began, and Elphaba felt her chest tighten at the sadness in her friend’s eyes.  
“It was just a smoke screen, that’s all.”

Glinda was just opening her mouth to bite back, when Fiyero stepped in, seeming to surprise both women, who were a little too caught up in their building argument to consider the third party in the room. “Kiamo Ko.” He murmured, and there was a hint of a smile still on his face, as he looked knowingly at her.

Despite herself, Elphaba smiled back. “I remembered you telling me about that time you were there as a child, and you loved it, but your parents rarely took you because you hid for so long during hide and seek that your mother had the guards out looking for you. It’s-“  
“A fugitive’s paradise.” He nodded, and she smiled again, although at the annoyed look Glinda was still giving her, she decided to explain further.

“Kiamo Ko’s builder was paranoid. There were escape tunnels and secret passages everywhere- it’s the only reason I went there in the first place. I just, hid. There was a trap door in the floor, I just… Hid.”

* * *

“Elphie?”

Glinda’s voice rang out above her, echoing slightly in the empty room. Elphaba flinched as she heard footsteps moving across the trapdoor overhead, sending little clouds of dust down into her hair. She tried her best to slow her breathing so she wouldn’t be discovered, though that was becoming increasingly difficult as she found herself on the verge of tears. She wiped her eyes on her sleeve, holding her breath as Glinda stood right above her.

It would be so easy to just pop out- let Glinda know she was running, but- no. She had to be strong. If she knew, Glinda would be in so much danger. It was safer for her to just disappear. Still, it didn’t mean that it didn’t hurt.

“Oh Elphie…” She could hear the pain in Glinda’s voice, and it broke her heart, but she stayed crouched in her little hidey hole, eyes tight shut against the tears threatening to overwhelm her.

She wasn’t sure how long she was sitting in the dark, listening to Glinda cry, but eventually, the room above her fell silent, and she decided it was safe to sneak out. The slight chink of light around the trapdoor had faded, so she knew nightfall must have come. Her hat was gone, and so was Chistery- she hoped that Glinda would look after him. She trusted her to, but still- it was a huge ask. She picked up her broom and bag from where she’d hidden them away, headed towards the doorway.  
“I’m sorry, Glinda…” She whispered, giving one last look towards the alcove where she’d last seen her before running for the stairs, knowing that she had to get out before anyone came to confirm.

* * *

Elphaba swallowed thickly, her eyes flicking over Glinda’s face, studying for her reaction. She still looked annoyed, but- it was a little softer than before.

“Why would you do that?” Glinda asked, and while her voice was soft, it had enough heat behind it that Elphaba’s cheeks flushed. There was a hint of betrayal in her tone.

“I had to.” Elphaba said quietly, and this time she did sit up, though she was careful as she could be about it, the way that the pain intensified in her back and side making it obvious that she probably shouldn’t be moving around yet. “I was hurting people more than I was helping. I was losing control and making things even worse for the Animals- If people thought the Wicked Witch was dead things could go back to normal, and I knew…” She trailed off, pushing her fingers through her hair. “I knew I had to die one way or the other. I thought that maybe I could get out of Oz for good everyone would be safe and I’d- Oh.”

Blinking in surprise, Elphaba felt Glinda‘s arms wrap gently around her neck, the blonde’s face pressed into her shoulder. “I missed you.” She murmured, her words muffled against Elphaba’s skin. 

It took a moment or so for her to get her head around what was happening- she could hardly remember the last time that somebody had hugged her-, but Elphaba hugged her back, tighter than Glinda was hugging her despite the pain in her shoulder. It just felt so good to be held again after so long.

“I missed you too, Glin. I missed you so much.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So this was mostly a fleshed out version of what I removed from the last chapter, hence the gelphie focus!


	5. Together We'll See Both Sunlight and Storms

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Just a fluffy little interlude where they work out some practicalities because I've written a lot of angst this week

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Together we'll see both sunlight and storms,   
> But equally sacred to us.   
> So trust in our house that you have a home,   
> Against the noise and rush.   
> I confess I'm a mess more often than not,   
> Burned the rice, maybe twice from not stirring the pot,   
> But we're happy, Vincent.   
> We're happy and that's enough.

“Why do you even need this many dresses?”

Fiyero was standing behind his wife in their bedroom, struggling under the weight of at least a dozen heavily sequined dresses she’d dumped into his arms as she dug through their closet, looking for something Elphaba could wear. After a little bit of persuading Glinda had relented to let her out of her sight long enough to go get herself cleaned up, but with Elphaba’s blood stained clothing in tatters they were left with this issue.

“I am a public figure, ‘Yero. People expect me to look as good as I am.” She shot back, but there was a teasing note in her voice, and the look she was giving him was challenging. She looked genuinely happy- more so than he’d seen her in a long while. “If you’re just going to whine why don’t you go feed the cat or something? Oh, and make some of that tea of your mother’s? Elphie still isn’t in a good state.” She stepped back from their closet slightly, hands on her hips, dressed in a pale pink slip- her ballgown had been ditched in a corner- it would need cleaning, if it was to be saved, but she could do an okay job of that with magic. She’d already done the rug and the couch, though, and decided to leave that for tomorrow. She usually wouldn't bother trying to do it magically, but it wasn’t as though they could send a dress with that amount of blood on it to be cleaned in the Emerald City- it’d attract far too many questions. 

He raised an eyebrow, but didn’t argue, setting the mountain of satin and lace down on their bed, and, briefly moving over to kiss her on the cheek. “Glin, darling? I think this can probably wait until tomorrow- it’s late, and she looks exhausted. For now I’m sure you must have a nightgown or something that would fit her, right?”

Glinda cocked her head to the side slightly, looking back over the racks of clothing crammed into the closet- which, by all accounts, should not have been as large as it was- before shutting the doors. “You’re right.” She murmured, turning to face him with another little smile playing across her lips. “Why are you always right?”

“Because,” Fiyero wrapped an arm around her waist, leaning down to kiss her quickly. “I’m a total genius.” She raised an eyebrow at him, and he laughed, spinning her around on the spot. “Well. I married the prettiest girl in Oz, didn’t I? I think that makes me pretty smart.” He offered her another quick kiss, before heading towards the door.

“That makes you lucky, not smart.” Glinda grinned and pulled him back in by the hand, unable to help herself. She traced a finger over one of the little diamonds on his jaw, kissing him one last time, before actually letting him go. “Now go make tea or something while I sort this-“ She looked pointedly at the tangled mess of clothing he’d dumped on the bed, “out”.

Fiyero dipped into a mock-bow, smirking slightly at her before turning to leave. As he swaggered back over to the doorway, he called “Whatever you say.” over his shoulder- though, despite his sarcasm, he was heading for the kitchen. Glinda always got her way.

* * *

“Glinda?” Elphaba was standing at the doorway to what she was assuming was Glinda and Fiyero’s bedroom, wrapped in a fluffy pink towel she’d grabbed from a rack in the corner. In all honesty, none of this really felt real to her yet- she kept expecting to wake up in her little shack any minute, with rain pouring in through the half-collapsed roof, and villagers baying for her blood- still. Her expectations had been wrong so far, and even if this was just a dream, she wanted to make the most of it. Being safe, and comfortable and cared about? Well that was something she’d have never thought possible again.

“Oh, hey, c’mon in. Shut the door- ‘Yero went to make tea anyway so he won’t be back for a few minutes”

The room was chaos- clothing everywhere, and about a dozen more pillows on the huge bed than it needed. It reminded her, rather ridiculously, of their dormitory at Shiz- all the distinctly Glinda frills and sparkles contrasting just as strongly with Fiyero’s simpler, bolder tastes as they had with Elphaba’s muted ones. She flushed slightly when she realised Glinda had stripped down to the slip she’d presumably been wearing under the dress from before, a little gold circlet tangled, and presumably forgotten, in her curls. Glinda, however, didn’t seem bothered in the slightest, moving to her side in an instant, offering a silvery lace nightdress, which Elphaba took gratefully. It wasn’t something she’d ever have really seen herself wearing, but she couldn’t be picky right now, since most of her clothes were probably in ashes somewhere on the outskirts of Ev.

“Thanks, Glin.” She smiled a little bit, still a little nervous at being in their house. She knew that they cared, but- it still felt strange to rely on the hospitality of others after so long only having herself. She held the nightdress in one hand, looking at Glinda, and biting her bottom lip, “Uh, do you have somewhere I can change, or…?”

Glinda laughed softly, “Oh come on, Elphie, you don’t have to be shy with me. We shared a room for years, it’s not like it’s nothing I haven’t seen.” She was only teasing, but Elphaba felt her cheeks grow hot. If she hadn’t lost so much blood she might have actually managed a blush- though she’d never really been sure if the darker shade of green counted as a blush anyway. She shot Glinda a look, and the blonde dissolved into a fit of giggles, turning to take a seat at her vanity and start detangling her hair. “C’mon, you know I don’t mean it- I won’t look, promise.”

Elphaba smiled, unable to help it. It was strange seeing Glinda like this- if she closed her eyes and ignored the pain, she could pretend they were back in their door room again, with Glinda sitting on her bed, ranting endlessly about Fiyero while Elphaba made a feeble attempt to read. She knew that this was temporary, it had to be- but. She could enjoy it while it lasted, right?

There was a moment or so of silence, before she broke into a smile again. “You better not.” She warned, teasing back before shifting over towards the edge of the bed,. Elphaba glanced over her shoulder quickly before dropping her towel, and tugging the night dress over her head. “Ah. Glin?”

Biting back a laugh, Elphaba turned to face the blonde, arms crossed over her chest to try and cover up a little more. The nightdress hung off of her slender form, clearly made for Glinda’s proportions, and, on top of that, it was far too short, since there was such a disparity in their heights. She probably could have done something about it magically, but somehow Elphaba still felt a duty to avoid using magic for frivolous things like this.

* * *

Glinda turned to her and for a moment she faltered, having to focus herself to keeping her eyes from wondering. She told herself it was just because she’d not seen Elphaba in a long time- she was looking for any other injuries that the girl was hiding- but. Well, Elphaba really did look beautiful standing there like that. After a few seconds silence too long, Glinda sprang back into action- the little gold tiara still half hanging from her hair as she moved over to a dresser in the corner.

“I- Oh, um. Yeah. Sorry. Hang on. I think I have some pyjamas somewhere.” She murmured, shaking her head to try and clear whatever had come over her a moment before. She managed to dig out an older pair- they were obnoxiously pink, with a crown-wearing frog printed on the shirt, but they’d probably be a better fit than the nightdress. Elphaba raised her eyebrows at them, and Glinda mimicked the gesture, offering a teasing challenge in the same way she had with Fiyero. “It’s these or that. I don’t have much in your size.”

“Well, as much as I love Fiyero, I don’t feel like heading out there dressed like this.” Elphaba relented, taking the pyjamas, and offering a quick thanks, before moving back over to the corner to change. Glinda doubted he’d mind, but she wasn’t about to say that.

The shirt was too baggy on her, just as the nightdress had been, and it ended a good three inches short, showing off a strip of green skin at her midriff, with the same visible at her ankles, but it was the best result she was likely to get with Glinda being so much shorter than her. Glinda looked over at her once she was finished, and couldn’t help but grin. Elphaba’s hair was longer than she’d ever seen it, braided over one shoulder, but with a few strands still clinging damply to her face. She looked so out of place in the too-short pink pyjamas that the effect was frankly adorable.

“I’ll have to head into the city tomorrow and get you some new clothes if you’re staying.” Glinda remarked idly, and while she did notice the shadow that crossed Elphaba’s face when she said that, she chose to ignore it. She didn’t want to get into the logistics of all this right now- she had her miracle, and she wasn’t about to question it. “But, those will do for now.”

She took a seat back at her vanity, pulling more pins out of her hair, feeling Elphaba step up behind her. “Do you want some help?” The green girl asked, and Glinda had barely nodded when Elphaba’s fingers were carefully detangling the little tiara, bringing the last few straggling pins with it. For a moment her fingers ran gently through the curls, separating them back out from where they’d been tangled, and Glinda couldn’t quite say why it made her heart speed up. It wasn’t as though they hadn’t done this before a hundred times- though, it had usually been her trying to make Elphaba’s hair behave, rather than the other way around.

Thankfully, the door was pushed open, and Fiyero stepped in, saving her the need to come up with something to say to break the silence which had fallen between them.

* * *

Fiyero had been shooed off to make tea, though when it became apparent that neither of the girls were planning on joining him back in the living room, he took matters into his own hands, moving back through to join them with the murky red liquid on a tray in his hands. It was his mother’s recipe- it was supposed to be good for healing, and while Fiyero wasn’t sure it had much more than a mild painkilling property, the warming mix of spiced fruits was enough to make anyone perk up a little- plus it was a favourite of Glinda’s, so any excuse to make it was a good one.

His eyes fell on Elphaba, and his face lit up. She didn’t look much like herself, and Glinda’s clothes didn’t fit her at all, but the effect was rather sweet. It was certainly an improvement on the pale, bloodstained girl who’d turned up on their doorstep. She was still pale- although, on Elphaba it was always a little harder to tell- and since she’d refused the pinlobble (she apparently maintained a bit of an aversion due to her mother’s fondness) he suspected she must still be in a good amount of pain- but, at least she didn’t look ready to bleed out on their couch any more.

“Ooh, you’ve been Glinda-fied again?” He smiled, though his face fell slightly when he took note of the gentle way Elphaba was playing with Glinda’s hair. As much as everyone was decent- well, aside from Glinda, but she seemed to enjoy walking around just to tease him- he still felt as though he’d stepped in on some intimate moment between the old friends.

“Sorry- I probably should have knocked. Just- Uh.” He stepped in, placing the tray down on the vanity, before picking his own half-drunk cup back up. “Didn’t want it to get cold. What with the snow and stuff.”

Elphaba smiled at him, and there was something behind it which made him a little uncomfortable- like she was guilty about just being here. “Thank you- both of you. For everything. I-“

“Don’t you dare apologise.” Fiyero cut her off quickly, and Glinda made a supportive hum from behind her. “I mean- Oz knows it would have been better if you’d come home under better circumstances but-“

Elphaba blinked, up at him. “Home?” She asked, sounding genuinely shocked. He felt his heart ache for her- how long had it been since she had somewhere she could call home?

“It’s home if you want it to be.” He promised, pressing one of the cups into her hands. She needed it, even if it was just to dull the pain a little so she could sleep. “We have a guest room. It’s home as long as you want it to be.”

“But-“

“No buts, Elphie.” Glinda cut in before Elphaba could even start to protest. Elphaba opened her mouth again, but Glinda raised an eyebrow, and she just shut it, defeated.

Fiyero shot her a smile, holding the door open to her. “I’ll show you to your room.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry not much happens in this one, it's more of a little fluffy interlude to make up for how much angst I've written recently.


	6. Whichever Path I Choose I Lose, You Know.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Glinda has only ever really loved two people, and so why is she always having to sacrifice the safety of one for the other? Mostly flashbacks looking at what Elphaba left behind.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Help me out.  
> I’m lost without you.   
> Standing, stuck on this impossible road.   
> No idea which way to go,  
> Whichever path I choose I lose, you know,  
> And I don’t know which way’s home.

_“Come with me. Think of what we could do together.”_

Elphaba’s words had been playing through Glinda’s head for days. How on earth was she supposed to accept that offer? Elphaba had been standing there holding that filthy old broom, standing on the edge of a balcony and asking her to jump. Her fingers curled around the bridge’s handrail, just as they had around the balcony’s edge, and she looked out to the west.

So much had happened in so little time. She’d gotten off the train from the Emerald City, and everyone already knew what had happened. Gossip travelled like wildfire in Oz, and Shiz was in no way immune. Nessarose and Boq were gone, with Nessa having been called home to her father’s bedside when he’d taken ill, bringing Boq as moral support. Most most of the girls on campus- girls Glinda had once considered friends- were talking about how they’d always known that Elphaba was a monster. Fiyero was sullen, and he seemed to miss her, though he wouldn’t say it. Glinda had had no idea the two of them were so close.

She’d found an excuse to make her exit from the waiting crowd, all gathered to ~~see if she was okay~~ get the gossip after the ~~brutal attack~~ heart wrenching abandonment of ~~Oz’s new public enemy~~ her best friend, though on returning to her dorm room, she rather wished she hadn’t. Elphaba’s side of the room had already been cleared, with the bed that had been haphazardly shoved in their at the start of the year gone, and her room left as the private suite she’d wanted. She’d never thought getting what she wanted could hurt this much.

Of course, they hadn’t gotten rid of her belongings completely. Her clothes and shoes were gone, but her books were still in a pile on the edge of her desk- as though they’d not known whose were whose, and the pink flower Glinda had lent her was still resting on the top of the stack. She’d picked it up, and just slumped down on the floor of the too-empty room. Where was Elphaba? Did she have a place to stay? Was she out there somewhere spending the increasingly cold nights sleeping rough in the woods of Oz?

Glinda’s fingers tightened around the handrail until her knuckles were white, her eyes still focused on the setting sun. She couldn’t think about that- not now.

_“So if you care to find me, look to the western sky.”_

Despite having been out here every night since she got back from the Emerald City- it was the only place on campus you could really see the sunset- Glinda hadn’t caught a single glimpse of her best friend flying around on that ratty old thing. A part of her was concerned that Elphaba had already been caught, but she got the feeling that that was the kind of thing which the Wizard would want to be well known, so, Elphie was still out there.

Well, she hadn’t been caught by the Wizard. Glinda couldn’t quite help the images in her mind of Elphaba being torn apart by animals, or freezing to death in the forest, or attacked by bandits. A part of her felt like such a coward for not going- if she’d just accepted Elphaba’s offer she wouldn’t be out there _alone_ and in so much danger.

_“Are you coming?”_

How could she go? Glinda wasn’t strong like Elphaba, she never had been. Glinda hadn’t been toughened up by years of toement in her childhood, she’d been wrapped up like she was made of glass, and coddled for years, and given everything she could ever want. And, if she left, Glinda had so much more to use. She had her family, and a position with the wizard, and friends. She had her schooling, as much as Morrible had insisted she didn’t need it any more, she as determined to finish it, just to prove to her father that she could. Despite all of that, though, she’d still been so tempted. There was just one thing.

 _Fiyero_.

Fiyero, who she really, truly loved, even if she’d learned he wasn’t perfect. Fiyero who had been the first one to come to her room and comfort her. Fiyero who was the only person who seemed as heartbroken as her over Elphaba’s sudden absence from their lives.

Glinda loved Elphaba, and being without her was becoming harder every day, but- she’d been choosing between losing two loves, and for now, Fiyero was the _easy_ choice. Both Elphaba and Fiyero meant love, but where Elphaba meant constant danger, and Fiyero was safety, and respectability, and the closest thing to perfection Glinda thought she had a chance of finding in this lifetime.

Still. It was so difficult not to think _what if_.

What if Elphaba had stayed calm for once in her life?

What if the wizard hadn’t played his hand so soon?

What if Glinda wasn’t such a coward?

Would Elphaba be safe now? How was she to know?

Glinda’s eyes focused on the west for a moment longer, and she saw a dark streak- probably a bird- flash across the sun, only to vanish a moment later. She closed her eyes, and for a moment let herself pretend she’d seen the point of that hideous hat perched atop the silhouette.

“I’m sorry, Elphie. Please, just. Come home. Save yourself while you still can.”

* * *

Fiyero was rarely surprised by his fiancé anymore. They were hardly engaged, and yet he knew her routines like the back of his hand. Once Elphaba had left, Glinda had begun to hate sleeping in her own room, choosing to slip into his most nights. There were some raised eyebrows amongst their friends, but for the most part he knew she just needed to have some other soul breathing beside her, and he was happy to oblige.

Of course, as their relationship developed and they’d left Shiz behind for good, having her slip into bed beside him became more natural, but- there was still a strange feeling that she was trying to cram him into the Elphaba sized hole in her life- not that he could blame her. Since she left, his whole life seemed to become less and less colourful with each passing day. He had Glinda, and she was a real light in the darkness for him, but. There was something missing.

Still, by now, they had their routines down to a science.

She’d wake up a half hour or so after he did, steal his coffee (he’d taken to making an extra cup just so he’d actually get some), spend far longer than he thought necessary in the bathroom making herself look ready for her public, and then step out looking more radiant each day. She’d usually be called to meet with some important figure before going about her public duties, and then if they didn’t have an evening engagement she’d come home, they’d eat together, or they’d attend whichever pointless dinner or dance they’d been invited, and pretend that everything was oh so _wonderful_.

One thing was a constant, though- no matter where they were, Glinda liked to watch the sunset. At home she’d stand out on the balcony of their Emerald City apartments, or if they were out she’d find a window. Even at dinner parties he’d catch her with her eyes cast to the west like she was looking for something. Or, someone.

Usually he’d leave her to it, but sometimes he’d just go stand with her, sometimes with his arms around her, on particularly cold nights, and sometimes just at her side. Tonight, there was snow just beginning to fall, and she had concern etched across her face as she watched the sun sink below the horizon.

“Winter’s coming on quickly.” She murmured as Fiyero wrapped his jacket around her bare shoulders. “It’s going to be a bad one this year. Do you think she’s going to be okay?”

If he was speaking honestly, Fiyero didn’t know. Elphaba was strong, and brave, but he wasn’t sure how much use her magic would be against the icy winters if she was still sleeping rough. They’d come so close to catching her in the Wizard’s office, but she’d managed to follow those flying monkeys out of the window before Fiyero had reached the top of the stairs, leaving them with no more chance of finding Elphaba than they’d ever had.

“We could find her?” He suggested, trying to keep it as gentle as he could. He knew Glinda enjoyed this- she liked being Glinda the Good, and making people smile. She was a good person, but this power had begun to go to her head a little, and Fiyero was desperately trying just to keep her grounded. Still, the way she tensed in his arms made him realise that she wasn’t in the mood for a suggestion like that- so, tonight it would be a kind lie rather than a scary truth. “She’s Elphaba, Glin. You know her. She’s tough. She’s not the type to let a little bit of snow get to her.”

Glinda relaxed slightly against his chest, but, she didn’t turn away from the sunset, letting snow fall and settle in her hair despite how much of a mess it would make of her perfectly styled curls when it began to melt. Eventually, when the encroaching blizzard grew too harsh, Fiyero attempted to guide her back inside.

“Come on, honey. You’ll freeze out here like this.” He kept his arms around her, trying to keep her warm as long as he could. It was hard not to notice how she flinched when he said the word freeze.

Glinda just shook her head, eyes still fixed on the fading light. “Five more minutes, Yero.”

Fiyero managed a little laugh, though there was no real humour behind it, especially with his breath leaving a cloud in the air. “Five more minutes.” He conceded, eyes turning to face west, scouring the horizon for any hint of movement.

* * *

For once, Glinda was the first to wake. Fiyero had always been an earlier riser than her, but Glinda was struggling to calm the tempest of her jind tonight, and so she found herself slipping out from under his arm, grabbing a blue silk robe she’d left hanging over the chair of her vanity, draping it over her arm and tiptoeing towards the door

Her breath hitched slightly as the traitorous old door creaked, but when it didn’t spark much of a reaction in Fiyero beyond prompting him to turn over, she relaxed again, quietly guiding it shut and then heading out into the hall, slipping the rope on over her nightdress as she went.

A large part of her was convinced she’d dreamed the events of the night before. Her Elphie coming home, and in such a terrible state. She thought she’d imagined it all, the blood, and the cold, and the horrible, helpless feeling that she might lose her all over again. It wouldn’t be the first time her nightmares had shown her Elphaba’s final moments.

Still, as she passed the guest room, and saw the door standing slightly ajar, Glinda peeked inside, hopeful despite the pain she knew would come if it _had_ been a fiction.

It wasn’t the most comforting of sights. Elphaba was curled into a tiny ball in the middle of the large, plush bed, the pastel sheets wrapped around her limbs as though she’d been thrashing, and her arms curled around herself. She looked like a scared child, or a wounded animal, trying to shelter herself from predators, and nothing at all like the girl Glinda had known, who would sleep like the dead, hog the covers and always, _always_ end up with her legs tangled with Glinda’s when they’d shared a bed. Still, at least she was here. At least she was _alive_.

They might have a long way to go, but for the first time in her life Glinda had managed to get both of the people she loved the most under one roof. For once protecting one didn’t mean endangering the other, and for once, Glinda was determined that she’d sacrifice whatever she had to in order to keep the pair of them that way.

Her fingers curled around the door handle, pulling it closed as quietly as she could, before tiptoeing back through their living room- pausing in the kitchen to scratch the cat behind the ears and slip it some cream (in Glinda’s mind it deserved all the treats in the world for alerting them to Elphaba’s presence before it was too late), as well as to make her own coffee for once. She headed out onto their snow-covered front porch, letting the mug in her hands warm her, and just watching the sun rise, her eyes turned east for once, not fixated on the fading west.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey, sorry about the big delay in posting, my computer gave up on me, and I had to wait for a replacement part to arrive! Should be back to regular posting now!


	7. Somehow You Have Made Me Someone New.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Elphaba wakes up and gets a chance to reflect on how the political landscape of Oz has changed over the years. She gets the feeling Glinda is hiding something but, she's hardly in a position to judge.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here we are, nearly strangers,  
> From two worlds that have rarely met.  
> But somehow you have made me someone new.   
> Travelling far on a journey that’s the longest I’ve taken yet,   
> Now I’m asking if you will let me come with you.   
> Though our lives are tattered and torn,  
> All I’m feeling now is reborn.

Elphaba had always been one to rise with the sun. As a child, it had driven her father up the wall- then again, there wasn’t much about Elphaba which _didn’t_ drive him up the wall. At Shiz, it’d led to her learning to be quiet in the mornings. Of course, at first she’d been obnoxious, stomping around and revelling in the fact that it annoyed Glinda, but, once they’d stopped fighting, it’d started to seem a shame to disturb Glinda. She so rarely looked peaceful, it was kind of adorable to see her laying there, not fussing over her hair or her outfit, just sleeping soundly (and drooling on her pillow, not that the Elphaba would have mentioned that undignified little detail with her). Once she’d left Shiz, it’d become more necessity than habit. For a long time she didn’t have anywhere stable to hide, and so she was setting up camp late and leaving early to avoid detection- even once she’d gotten to Kiamo Ko it wasn’t as though she’d been able to sleep soundly- and, since leaving there? Well, Elphaba wasn’t sure she’d had a single good night’s sleep.

For a moment, when she woke up to sunlight in her eyes, she began to panic- how could she have been stupid enough to sleep in? The light was still weak, the sun couldn’t have been up long, but still. Those kind of mistakes could be fatal. Still, once she’d taken a moment to let her mind catch up with her instincts Elphaba remembered where she was- in a real bed, in a real house, and- for now at least- far, far away from the mob who’d wanted her dead. Of course, it meant that she was back in the Wizard’s territory, putting the only friends she had left in danger, but some small, selfish part of her was still happy at the development.

Shuffling quietly out of the room, Elphaba was a little surprised to see Glinda sitting in the cottage’s living room, the ballgown she’d been wearing the night before settled in her lap as she attempted a few basic cleaning spells on the fabric. Another pang of guilt dropped like lead into Elphaba’s stomach, and she began to feel bad for ever feeling content with this situation. It might have been an accident, but she still had no right to disrupt Glinda and Fiyero’s lives like this.

“Morning…” She murmured, tentatively. Glinda hardly looked up from her work, repeating the greeting back but not saying anything more.

Elphaba moved over, careful not to dislodge the long-since-empty coffee cup balanced precariously on a stack of spellbooks as she took a seat beside Glinda. She sat stiffly, unsure of what to do now that the desperation and elation and exhaustion of the night before had passed. She tried to hold her tongue, and let the blonde speak fist, but watching her struggle with the magic was tricky, and after a minute or so the frustration grew too much, and she spoke up. “Would you like some help with that?”

She didn’t wait for Glinda to respond, placing a hand on the most egregious blood stain and murmuring a few well-practiced words under her breath. All at once the blood in the dress began to bead up at the surface, all seeming to congeal into a single palm-sized droplet that Elphaba was able to pick up, leaving the fabric pristine. Elphaba dropped it into the coffee cup where it lost its shape, once again becoming liquid, sloshing against the sides of the cup faintly before stilling.

“Show off.” Glinda said, though her tone made Elphaba a little more comfortable. It was a little teasing, without any real malice behind it. It reminded her of being in their sorcery seminars, where she’d picked things up with far less work than Glinda had to put in. After a few moments, she begrudgingly added a soft, “Thanks.”

“Least I could do. It was my mess after all.” Elphaba shrugged, running her fingers over the dress to try and smooth the creases from where she’d had to press down. She could feel thousands of tiny crystals sewn into place, and dreaded to think how much this must have cost. “I- I don’t exactly remember getting a good look at you, but I’m sure you looked just _wonderful_ in it.” The emphasis Elphaba put on the word wonderful was somewhat sarcastic, and though it wasn’t really aimed at Glinda she did worry for a moment it would be taken the wrong way. The smile it earned allowed her to relax again.

“Well, _wonderful_ was kind of the order of the day.” She replied, and Elphaba was struck by how much older Glinda sounded. Surely she had not been gone that many years- but, it was clear that her friend had gained a good amount in wisdom while Elphaba was in exile. She really had put a lot onto her shoulders when she’d left. 

Glancing back towards the bedrooms, Elphaba suddenly became aware of what she may have stumbled into the night before, and began to heap yet more guilt onto herself. “I didn’t interrupt anything important last night, right?” She paused for a moment, before looking back from the dress, to Glinda, “Oh. Of course I did with you dressed like this- I’m so sorry Glinda I didn’t mean to- just, tell me I didn’t crash in on your anniversary or something?” While Elphaba tried hard to suppress that wicked little part of herself that still felt some jealousy at the concept of the two of them sharing an anniversary, Glinda actually laughed. “What? Oh I did didn’t I? I’m so sorry I can just-“

“Elphaba, calm down.” Glinda cut her off before she could gain any more steam, shaking her head. “I laughed because you crashed _your own_ anniversary- and Oz knows you’re probably the only person capable of managing that.”

A frown crossed Elphaba’s face, confusion etched in every line. “ _My_ anniversary? No offence, Glin, but I’m pretty sure I’d remember if I-“ Her face fell at the shadow which crossed Glinda’s. “Oh. _That_ anniversary.” She glanced at the dress again. “It must be one hell of a party- but, then, I guess that’s the Wizard’s style, right?”

“The wizard?” Now it was Glinda’s turn to look confused, an expression which quickly gave way to surprise, and then to realisation. “Oh, of course. You weren’t- you’d gone by then.” The Wizard retired, not long after you ‘melted’. He went back to his own land.”

Of all the things which Elphaba had expected to hear today, _the wizard retired_ would have been the last. He was a fool, sure, but a power hungry one, and it wasn’t something which Elphaba could see him just stepping away from willingly. “ _Retired_?” Her voice practically oozed disbelief. “You’re telling me the _wonderful wizard of Oz_ just stepped back and walked away? Just like that?”

Glinda shot her a sly smile, and once again Elphaba felt that faint rush, like they were schoolgirls again engaging in a secret they had to keep hidden from their professors. “Well. If any of the people ask, that’s what happened, but.” She paused, and Elphaba found herself leaning in a little closer, hanging on her every word. “Well. I was angry with him, and upset, and once I knew the right buttons to push it was easy enough to get him out of the picture.” 

Elphaba blinked a few times, feeling rather stupid- she must have looked it, at least. She just couldn’t process that information quickly enough, her brain desperately chasing after her senses. The Wizard was gone? And Glinda had done it? It wasn’t as though she’d not believed Glinda had the power to at least exorcise some control over the Wizard, but shooing him off entirely? It was more than she could have hoped for.

“Elphie?” Glinda cut in, sounding almost tentative, and Elphaba suddenly became aware that she’d been gawping.

“You managed to- He’s really gone?” Elphaba sounded more hopeful than she had in a long time, and Glinda barely had time to nod before Elphaba was hugging her tightly, her arms wrapped around the blonde’s shoulders despite the fact that it wasn’t exactly comfortable on her barely-healed wounds. Hugging Glinda had always been worth a little pain, and hugging Glinda right after finding out she’d achieved everything Elphaba had ever aimed to achieve? Well that was _more_ than worth the uncomfortable pulling on too-thin skin. “How did you manage it? What did you say to him?”

She felt Glinda tense slightly against her, and there was a long moment of silence, before she pulled back and spoke again.

“The Wizard took a little publicity tour of Oz when he gained power.” Glinda’s voice was measured, and Elphaba couldn’t help but feel that she’d just slipped back into her dignified politician act, but she was too excited at the news to push her on the point. “In theory he was shaking hands with prominent politicians and forming connections. In practice he was- for want of a better word- shagging his way around Oz’s inner circle. And-“

The pause in Glinda’s story lasted a few beats longer than seemed natural, and for a brief moment Elphaba saw a shadow of _something_ cross Glinda’s face, getting the distinct impression that she was changing track with her tale. “Glin?” She questioned briefly, watching as her friend seemed to almost physically shake herself out of whatever strange mental place she’d visited.

“Oh- Sorry, just,” She forced a laugh which wasn’t even vaguely convincing. “It’s hardly a nice thought- you can’t see why any woman would want to- then again I suppose he was a younger man back then.” She paused briefly, the cogs in her mind almost visibly whirring. “I just had to remind him how difficult the husbands of all the women he’d been _networking_ with could make his life if word got out, and he decided to bow out gracefully so he didn’t have to face a lot of angry politicians.”

So, Glinda had been right all those years ago. Popularity, and gossip could sway the fate of kingdoms. She’d done something Elphaba could never manage, and she’d done it with no bloodshed.

“So if the Wizard is gone, who’s in charge?” She asked, and, seeing the look that crossed Glinda’s face, her eyes widened. “Glinda the Good, High Queen of Oz. My you do know how to earn titles, don’t you?”

“ _Acting_ High Queen.” Glinda corrected her quickly, “Just a regent until a true heir is found. And, as pretty a title as it is I find I’m not much suited to it.”

The green girl was barely listening, already on her feet and inspecting the photographs displayed around their living room, many of which seemed to hold a new significance now she knew their context. She stopped at one of Glinda looking a vision of loveliness in the grandest white dress Elphaba had ever seen in front of an alter- Fiyero’s arms were around her waist the tattoos on his arms standing out just as sharply as the crystals on her dress, though he did seem to be having a difficult time avoiding stepping on her skirts. She could just picture the two of them bickering about how to stand to get the shot where they both looked perfect. It brought a smile to her lips (as well as another selfish pang of old jealousy, though she’d never admit it), especially when she noticed a painfully familiar green bottle settled on the corner of the alter with a few flowers inside. It looked out of place in such a pristine setting, but- it was strangely comforting to know she hadn’t been forgotten.

Glinda approached behind her just as her fingers skated over the glass. “Oh, now don’t you be getting all misty eyed over that old thing.” She teased, adding with a slight smirk, “I mean, I always do, but you shouldn’t.”

Elphaba quickly set the gilded frame back in it’s place, though she couldn’t help but smile at hearing her old words parroted back at her, albeit in a more pleasant context. “I’m sorry I couldn’t be there.” She murmured, only earning a shake of the head from Glinda.

“Don’t worry about it- I understand.” There was a moment more of silence, and Glinda’s hand briefly, and affectionately, rested on Elphaba’s forearm. “I should go wake that husband of mine and get dressed, I have an engagement in the city I can’t get out of. Will you be okay here today?” She sounded nervous, as though she was expecting Elphaba to vanish the minute she was left alone, and while the thought had definitely crossed her mind- well. With the wizard gone, Elphaba didn’t have to be quite so scared of hurting her friends. She could indulge herself, at least for a few days. “’Yero will still be here most of the day, so you won’t be all on your own, just in case, and-“ She cut off.

Elphaba was hugging her tight. “I’m not going anywhere, Glin. Not yet.”


End file.
